You're Radioactive, Baby!
by Darkmoonwriter
Summary: Sequel to "The Not-So-Lone Lone Wanderer." This one will focus more of Anna and Butch's relationship along side their adventures in the wastes; LWxButch Deloria
1. Dunwich Building

Anna felt like she was going to vomit. Head spinning, breathing tight, she turned in a circle, staring wide-eyed at the decaying ruins around her. Feral Ghouls hissed in the distance, their horrible cries echoing off the walls and making them that much more gruesome. Their footsteps were growing louder and louder, attracted by Anna's fear. She held up her rifle, her arms shaking. Butch was gone, along with all the supplies, and the only thing lighting her way was her small pipboy light.

All of this for a stupid book.

Anna felt shame flush through her as she was on the edge of tears, screaming in alarm as one Feral Ghoul burst into the room. It was a mistake coming here. This place was nothing like anything Anna, or Butch, have had to go through before. Anna stared down at the corpse of the Feral Ghoul she had just killed, at least it had some ammo on it. She swallowed, pocketing it and checking over her gun, trying to get her bearings. Maybe if she stayed here, Butch would find her...What if he was hurt? Once again, Anna scolded herself. Was all of this worth it? Just to get rid of some dusty, blood covered book that she barely knew anything about?

It would have been a lot easier to let the guy pay her and just walk away.

* * *

><p>"<em><strong>They attacked while I slept. I... I don't expect to survive. I only pray that you haven't taken that book to Obadiah. You must take up my mission." <strong>_

_Anna stared at the message written in blood. 'Die Thief.' Anna swallowed as she listened closely to Marcella's holotape. She didn't know the women well, but she had liked her. Marcella actually knew what Anna was talking about when she mentioned her mother's favorite passage. Now, she was dead. Her blood scattered everywhere around the small tent, and Anna was listening to a tape titled 'Marcella's Last Words'_

"_**There is... one way to utterly destroy the Krivbeknih, but you must take a pilgrimage, far north of Point Lookout, in the Capital Wasteland. Seek a place called Dunwich. Within is an obelisk, itself a wicked thing. It'll consume the book - you need only press the book to its surface. May God shed his blessings upon you, child. Make haste for Dunwich."**_

_Anna took a deep breath in. Dunwich...She was pretty sure she knew where that was. She had never been inside however, she got some bad vibes from that place. When you're barely 19, and all alone in the Capital Wastes with only one gun and a handful of ammo, you're not so eager to go exploring. _

"_**My God, I am sorry for all my sins with all my heart. In choosing to do wrong and failing to do good, I have sinned against You whom I should..."**_

_Anna bit her lip as the Holotape ended, stealing a glance at Marcella's body. Though Anna didn't know much about her God anymore, or what kind of afterlife she believed in, She just hoped that wherever she ended up, it was someplace happy. Anna's bag where the book laid suddenly felt heavier. It was her job now to carry out Marcella's wishes. Putting her pipboy away, she made sure Marcella had a proper burial, making the small grave with a makeshift cross she was getting much too good at making. _

_Anna was now a mix of emotions, who was behind Marcella's murder? Unfortunately, she had a pretty good idea..._

* * *

><p>"Butch?. . .Buuuutch?" Anna whispered harshly into the darkness, creeping along the corridor. She couldn't believe she had allowed them to get separated. She wasn't sure who was to blame, Him or Her. Either way, Some Feral Ghouls had cornered them and chased them about. When Anna had killed the last one, Butch was gone.<p>

'This Place is huge!' Anna thought as she referred to her map again. Not that she was ever gifted in the art of map reading in the first place. Butch could be anywhere. She just hoped he had enough sense to stay in one piece. She felt as if this place could collapse at any moment.

Another growl down the hallway made her jump. She readied her rifle. This time she made sure to keep her breathing calm and collected. She had always hated ghouls, the feral kind of course. They always hissed and twitched in such a way that made Anna run for the hills. Some days she'd rather take on a Super Mutant Behemoth or two rather than take on a Feral.

So what better place to get lost in all alone in the middle of the night?

She turned the offending ghoul into a pile of radioactive slim. Putting her weapon away, she kneeled down. Bullet casings...these seemed pretty new, they weren't covered in dust like everything else. That meant Butch had passed through here at some point. She rose, a little giddy at her detective skills. Butch couldn't have gone far...hopefully.

* * *

><p><em>Anna stared down the pitiful old man. Obadiah Blackhall. The man who sent her out and started this crazy quest in the first place.<em>

"_The book. You've found it. Quickly, give it to me." He put out a hand, reaching for it. Anna bit back a bitter laugh, eyes narrowing._

"_I haven't decided what I'm going to do with it yet." She lied. Of course she had already made up her mind about going back home and disposing of the book. She just wanted to see what Obadiah had to say._

"_Surely you're not considering giving it to Marcella? Come now, the woman can't rub two caps together. Give it to me and be paid." He sounded desperate. Why would someone even want a book like this so badly? the thing smelled, and honestly gave Anna the creeps. She felt like she was walking around with an armed landmine in her pocket, ready to go off at any moment. Anna looked down, trying to control her anger._

"_Marcella's dead, actually. I figured you had something to do with that."_

"_Can't say that I did, but that's all the more reason you should give the book to me." _

_Anna scoffed, shaking her head and backing away. How could someone be so heartless? She turned and ran from him without saying another word. She was going home._

* * *

><p>Anna balanced on the plank of wood, walking across it carefully to receive the last of Jamie's recordings. The Story of Jamie, from what Anna had gathered, was a tragic one. Mind you, she hadn't been thinking much about it while running for her life from ghouls and searching for her kind-of-sorta boyfriend. Speaking of which...<p>

Gazing down the giant hole ripped through multiple floors, Anna's eyes focused on the limp body of Butch Deloria.

"Butch!" She gasped started making her way down carefully. She nearly fell about four times, but managed to get to him in one piece. "Butch..." She said again, a bit softer, nearly tripping over some rubble as she made her way over to him, shaking him. For a split second, she thought he was dead. Thankful, he gave a small whimper, his head rolling to the side. He was bleeding from his temple, the skin around it was a lovely mash of yellow, black and purple. He must have fallen.

"Stupid..." Anna muttered, glancing up at the hole. He must have at least fell three stories. She started to dig out a stimpak. He never did watch where he was going. Butch jerked away once she stabbed the needle into him. "Easy there tiger, its me." She put a hand on his shoulder.

Butch glanced around, eyes finally landing on her. He took another moment to process what must have happened.

"You're alright!" He blurted finally, a sigh of relief. "I was beginning to think I'd be lost in here for forever."

"Don't be so dramatic." She stood, dusting herself off. She glanced around, eyes landing on another door. Part of her knew the smart thing to do was to go home...But she still had a quest to complete.

* * *

><p>"<em>About time you got back!" Butch punched her lightly in the arm, as if she had just come back from a shopping trip rather than disappearing for months at a time to a mysterious place called 'Point Lookout' <em>

"_Oh can it you." She couldn't hide her grin at finally seeing him again. She leaned against his side. "I figured I'd find you here." Here being the muddy rudder. Why Butch loved this place so much, she'd never know. Maybe it was the first safe place Butch found after leaving the vault. He just shrugged._

"_I dunno, it got boring without you. So I thought a change of scenery was in order." He finished the last of his drink._

"_Some scenery..." Anna glanced around, feeling Butch's arm shift under her as he dug out some caps. _

"_I'm assuming you wanna head home now?" He stood._

"_Hell yeah I wanna go home." She watched him. "But..."_

"_But." He frowned, it wasn't really a question, he had expected it._

"_Buuut there's a thing I kinda have to do before we settle in." Anna grinned as Butch rolled his eyes._

"_Of course, You never change, Nosebleed. What's so wrong with just hang'n? You always gotta do that stupid goodie-two shoes act." He sighed. Well, it wasn't a no. Anna shrugged._

"_I like helping people...It's the right thing to do." She did a double take as Butch leaned down and kissed her on the forehead. Oh...Right. She felt her cheeks heat up. They were sort of an item now, and Anna still wasn't sure how she felt about it. Butch saw her hesitation, but didn't comment._

"_Come on, let's get out of here." Butch coughed a bit. Anna tried on a smile._

"_Yeah, We've got an abandoned building to explore!"_

* * *

><p>"You sure you're alright?"<p>

"I'm fine! I'm not the one who fell three stories." Anna glanced back at him as they made their way down deeper into the underground of the building.

"True...But still!" Butch said stupidly, jogging to catch up with her. She looked around, the set up reminding her of the subway tunnels.

"You think we're getting close to the obelisk?"

"How am I supposed to know?" Butch blurted. Anna sighed, questioning, once again, why she put up with him. "What are we gonna do anyway after we destroy that book?"

"Mmh...I don't know. What do you wanna do." She slowed down she stopped to shoot down a Feral Ghoul who was blocking the stairway. Finally Anna felt a lot calmer, now that she had backup.

"Never come back here again." Anna laughed, popping open the med kit that was hanging on the wall. "And being sober sucks, we should make sure to get a drink somewhere."

"Sounds like a plan." She pocketed the stimpaks.

"Just you and me and a bottle of wine..." Was he trying to imply something?

"You drink wine?" Anna glanced back at him again, he didn't seem the type.

"Eh." He shrugged. "Not really, but you do." She turned back.

"After surviving this place, a think a few shots are in order." Butch laughed at that.

"Yeah! Now we're talking!"

Anna hushed him as she opened another door. This one opened up to cavern. She reached back and tapped his chest lightly, signally this was it. With weapons drawn they headed down into the dimly lit cave.

* * *

><p><em>The pair stared at the skeleton draped over the ammo boxes, the dried blood, and flicking lights. <em>

"_Can we leave?" Butch asked after a moment._

"_I wish..." Anna muttered, hesitantly stepping inside. The door swinging shut with a loud bang behind them. Of course, the first thing Anna did was go to the towards the dead body, picking through the ammo boxes. _

"_You sure you don't wanna get outta here?" Butch stared down the dark hallway. _

"_I told you, We have this book we have to get rid off. It shouldn't be too difficult." Anna rose, going into the room. She stopped in front of the table full of holotapes. "Jaime's Personal Journal: Entry One," Anna read out loud, picking one of them up. "Through Five." She added, glancing at Butch. She tried to give him a smile, but that didn't seem to calm Butch's nerves anymore. "Let's have a listen?" Anna loaded the First One in, exploring the rest of the room as it played. _

"_**Why the hell would he come all the way out here? Dad's been a little nuts for some time now, but not like this.**_

_**Leaving me in that crappy old hospital without waking me... Without a goddamn flashlight.**_

_**I made enough selling the meds we scrounged to have kept us both fed at the colony for weeks.**_

_**Now I'm almost out of rations, my shoes are pretty much destroyed, and I'm still chasing the old coot. By my last reckoning, he was headed south."**_

_The start of the entry was hauntingly familiar. Anna listened with distaste slightly as she robbed the vending the machine of the last of its soda. Butch stayed quiet until the tape ended. Of course he was thinking the same thing._

"_Heh, Why does that sound-"_

"_Quit it." Anna rolled her eyes, the subject was still a sore one. _

"_Sorry...Anyway, do you have any idea where to start with this place?"_

"_No idea...Just follow the evil vibes?" Anna shrugged, loading on the next holotape._

* * *

><p>Anna crouched, creeping forward just enough to see the Feral Ghouls wandering down in a pitt. In the middle of the room was a gruesome looking structure. The Obelisk. Anna inhaled, her mind trying to think of a plan. She took out a hand grenade, not even consulting Butch before pulling the pin and rolling it down the steps. The Ferals of course flocked to it, excited by the noise. Only to have it blow up in their faces.<p>

"Now!" Anna cried, jumping up and firing her rifle. Butch fumbled to keep up. The Feral ghouls gave a collective angry hiss, sprinting up the stairs towards them, giving them everything they got.

"What the hell!?" Butch yelled as He felt a bullet whizz by his head. Looking past Anna and the dying Ghouls, he saw another one but this one more human like. He wasn't a complete skeleton. This guy glared at them, aiming his rifle for a kill shot. "Anna!" He shoved her out of the way, the bullet bouncing off the wall and hitting the last of the Feral Ghouls.

"What!?" Anna gazed wide-eyed at the Ghoul before them. It suddenly clicked for her. "Oh my God I think that's Jaime!"

"Who?" Butch frowned, not sure if he had ever heard the name before. (Of course he didn't pay attention to any of the holotapes they had picked up.)

"Maybe we could just-" Anna didn't get to finish as Jaime fired again, missing Anna by a fraction.

"Forget it! He looks pretty frosted!" Ben drew his hunting rifle again, firing. Anna's shouts were drowned out by gunfire. How dare he try and mess with his girl? Jaime was going to be in for a world of trouble. He was cruis'n for a bruisin'. He was- It was actually Anna who delivered the final shot to the head. Butch did a double take.

"Thank you," She said, brushing some stray hair out of her face. "But I can handle myself." For a chick being covered in dirt, blood, and God only knew what else...She looked pretty good to Butch.

"I know." He replied, focusing on checking over his hunting rifle. "I couldn't let someone one up my best gal, now can I?" Butch almost melted at the smile she gave him.

"Yeah, yeah. Alright hot-shot." She even laughed a little, before sobering and turning towards the Obelisk. "It looked like he was worshiping this thing..." Butch stepped up next to her.

"Maybe this is the Obe-thingy?"

"No dip." Just like that, Anna was back to her old self. Acting as if He was the stupidest vault dweller to ever grace the wasteland. She pulled out the book, the Krivbeknih. The cover was scratched, and covered in dried blood. At just one glance you could tell that it was a truly evil object. Almost mirroring the vibe that came from the Obelisk. Combined, they gave the pair goose bumps. "Ready to end this?"

"Sure...but what do we do now?"

"Marcella said just to press the book to its surface." Anna glanced down at it in her hands. She was tempted to page through its withered pages, but she was too afraid of what she might find.

"How does that do anything?"

"I don't know...Something about it absorbing its power. Lets find out." Anna held up the book, pressing it to the surface. A blinding flash burst forth, the book vaporizing from her grasp. A Burst of fire and radiation came next, filling the room with a burning heat. "BUTCH." Anna screeched, his clothes had caught fire in the wave.

Butch hadn't even noticed the flames until Anna tackled him to the ground.

"Stop drop and roll! Stop drop and roll!" Anna yelled, panicking and trying to pat out the flames. Butch shoved her off, the flames finally gone.

"That...That..." Butch couldn't think of any words to describe what just happened. He quickly stood before Anna could start patting him down again. Instead, she filled the stunned silence with a small whimper, wrapping her arms around him.

"I'm sorry I made you catch on fire." She said into his jacket. Butch blinked, awkwardly patting her on the head.

"I...forgive you?" Normally you wouldn't forgive someone for that so easily, but with Anna, Butch could forgive just about anything. "You didn't know it was gonna do that, did you?"

"No." She squeaked, refusing to part from him. Butch finally put his arms around her, he hadn't realized how much she was shaking.

"Hey..." He said softer, tucking some of her hair behind an ear. "Wanna get out of here?"

"Of course...I just don't wanna go through that creepy building again...or face more ghouls...I'm kinda done with things trying to kill me for a while." She squeezed his rib cage.

"Maybe we can find a shortcut or someth'n. Come on." He pried her from him, lacing their fingers together. She gave him a small smile, following him back up the stairs and hopefully onto a path towards the sunlight.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**

**Had a lot of fun writing this request! I Promise more fluffy things in the future. **


	2. Winter Wonderland

Anna stared at the pit of radioactive waste and trash for a moment, then smiled.

"I'm gonna go play in it."

"What!?" Butch came up next to her.

"Well, not 'play' really, just look for stuff." She was already digging out her radiation suit.

"You can't be serious..." Butch watched with distaste as she pulled the yellow suit on over her armor.

"Just watch me!" Anna pulled on the gloves, flexing her fingers.

"You're too kooky..." Butch crossed his arms, watching her finish and hop into the pit. He could hear her geiger counter ticking from where he was standing. Anna didn't reply as she started trudging through the waste. He thought for a moment longer, then opened his mouth again. "Are we jacketed now, or what?"

"Why would I want your jacket?" Anna turned back, confused.

"No! Like, dating. Are we dating now?"

"Oh..." Anna glanced down a bit, thinking for a few seconds. "Uh...Sure? I guess? I just don't know why you'd want to...ya know...with me." Anna turned back to the task at hand. Butch wasn't completely sure why, but he gave a sigh of relief.

"Maybe because you look cute with the way you waddle in that suit of yours?" He smirked.

"Shut up!" Anna yelled back, feeling her cheeks warm up. Butch snorted at that, settling down on the ground against a boulder. He figured they were going to be here awhile. He calmly lit a cigarette as he watched Anna nearly face plant into the toxic slime she was standing in. Why did he like this girl again?

Anna had always been a constant mystery in his life, even when she wasn't there. How could someone appear so human, yet be... special. Anna had a long list of faults, but by this point, Butch found himself overlooking every single one of them. Back in the Vault, he used to think her laugh was horribly annoying. Now, he seemed almost desperate to at least draw a giggle from her. Her hands were calloused and dirty all the time now, but her touch was nothing but gentle when it came to Butch. (Most of the time, at any rate) The way she didn't take shit from anyone was also a giant plus in Butch's book. He didn't like girls who were real pushovers.

Anna was... Anna. They grew up together. He still remembered when they were 10, the day she wore her hair in those cute little pigtails. Butch had pulled them so hard he made her cry. She was always easy to cry, at least when she was a kid. By the time they were 16, Anna learned not to put up with his crap. That didn't make her special though. By that time, the only one he could still get a rise out of was Amata.

_Amata._ Butch mused for a moment over how she must be doing. She was some hot shot overseer now. Sometimes he thought about heading back there for a visit. Anna was banned from the vault, not him. During the infamous rebellion of Vault 101, it seemed that he and Amata were the only ones who kept their heads. He almost fought her over who should lead, but he knew it'd be best for Amata to take charge. If anyone was going to get her dad to listen, it was his daughter right? Wrong.

He remembered the day Anna came waltzing back in. Covered in dirt, blood, and mismatched pieces of armor. She was no longer the sweet little daddy's-girl Butch had grown up with. She had just breezed right past him, up to Amata. She didn't even pause to explain herself, just asked how she could help. Just like that, it was fixed! Well, obviously not right away, but the eminent threat. With just a few words Anna had changed the mind of the most stubborn man Butch had ever met.

He'd never admit it, but that day, Anna seemed like the very definition of cool. It didn't seem that bad in the Wastes if a goodie-two shoes like her could survive it. She made it seem so easy. He didn't understand the heartbreak on her face when Amata told her to leave. Who on earth would want to stay clammed up in that tiny little vault. Butch was desperate to get out- hell, he had almost kissed her right then and there out of joy when she told him anyone was free to go.

Butch blinked, the memory shattering for a moment as something slammed into the rock face next to his head.

"I said catch!" Anna yelled from her spot in the middle of the pit. Butch looked down to spy a box of snack cakes. There was no way he was eating that.

"You missed." He picked it up, examining the molded cardboard. He yelped in alarm as another box collided with his head.

"HA!" Anna grinned, doing a little dance in place before turning back to the pile she was going through. Butch huffed, returning to his original train of thought.

Anna was even more different now from the time she returned home, but in a good way. She seemed more tired, weathered, and sour during their short reunion in the vault. She didn't seem to want anything to do with the vault dwellers then. It was a totally different story when they had met in Rivet city. Again, Anna seemed almost like a different person.

She was more open; she actually smiled when she saw him, running over to join him. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't glad that she had asked to travel together. He needed someone to show him the ropes. He had only spent about a week in the wasteland by himself before reaching Rivet City. He couldn't believe how easy Anna had made it seem. Hell, he nearly died the first night. She'd still seemed so badass to him back then. Though now...

He watched Anna waddle back over to him, climbing out of the pit.

"I found some bottle caps!" She grinned stupidly, her suit crooked. How could he have ever thought she was cool?

"Make sure to take some rad-away or whatever." He watched as she stripped the suit, taking in a breath a fresh air.

"Is it cold out here to you?" She ignored his advice, folding up the suit with care before putting it away.

"Nah, Not really." He stood, tossing his cigarette bud and stomping it out. The Capital wasteland was like a desert. Scorching hot in the day, and pretty cold at night. Having it drop down lower than 80 during the day was just unheard of. He checked his pipboy and frowned. The thing must have been broken, the temperature gage anyway. "Say's its 30..."

"Really?" Anna checked her own to confirm, then shivered a bit again. She was wearing only a short sleeved shirt. "Well, we should be heading back to Megaton before it gets too late."

"Please. I hate it out here." Butch glanced around. The wasteland only got worse and more hostile at night.

The two started on their way back, walking side by side, hands brushing against each other.

"Why'd you ask if we were dating?" Anna said, shattering the silence.

"Hmm?" Butch glanced up, shoving his hands in his pockets. "I don't know... Dating seems kinda pointless in the Wastes, ya know?"

"True. But what else would we be?" Anna watched the horizon, as if she was addressing it rather then him. Butch shrugged, dragging his boots a little.

"I don't know..." he said again.

"I've never actually dated anyone." Anna admitted, sighing. Butch looked up, a bit surprised.

"Really?"

"Well of course. I never really had anyone back in the Vault."

"Well... Yeah, but I never made it a point to be involved in your stupid love life." Butch defended himself.

"My options were pretty limited." Butch shrugged, then nodded.

"Yeah, that's pretty true I guess."

"It's funny... You'd think we'd never seen each other after leaving the Vault...Yet here we are." Anna gave a small shrug of her shoulders, a smile tugging on her lips as she played with her fingers. Butch glanced at her. It was funny, wasn't it? Back in the Vault, Butch never really thought twice about her. Now she was one of the only things he thought about. "Butch?" He blinked, he had stopped walking. She was turned back towards him, eyes narrowed in confusion.

"C'mere for a sec..." He gestured. Anna, still confused, headed over. He could see her breath float up in one large white puff as she joined him. "It _is_ funny..." he began, putting an arm around her waist and pulling her close, promising himself he wouldn't get lost in her big hazel eyes again. "I honestly never thought I'd get the-"

"Holy shit!" Anna blurted, eyes widening. Butch frowned.

"Doll, I'm trying to say something sweet for once if you'd just-"

"No! Holy shit!" She pointed a bit, then held up her hand. She caught a small, delicate white something as if floated down through the air. Butch looked down, watching it melt just as fast as it appeared.

"...Snow?" Butch remembered the word, looking up to see thousands of flakes start to float down around them.

"I didn't think the Wasteland could ever get snow!" Anna cried, seeming to get a bit excited as she attempted to catch another snowflake in her hand. Butch shrugged, watching the snow drift peacefully for a moment, before returning his gaze back to her. The snow had started to accumulate on her hair. Dusting her eyelashes as they fluttered. Butch couldn't stall himself any longer. He lifted a hand, taking her chin and directing it towards him. He leaned down and kissed her before he could change his mind.

The embrace was warm, and soft. Anna shut her eyes, body relaxing under his touch. She felt safe, despite being right in the open in the middle of the dangerous wasteland. This kiss made her head spin, her nerves ache, and made her forget how to properly breath for a few moments. She breathed in, hand gripping his jacket in it's usual place. They finally parted, the chilled wasteland air coming in as a shock to both of their lungs.

"Still not used to it..." Anna muttered, a smile quickly curling up onto her lip. Eyes still closed as the kiss lingered, Butch smirked.

"Am I just that good?" Anna scoffed, eyes opening as she smacked his shoulder gently.

"You wish."

"So I just gotta kiss you again and again until you get used to it, huh?" Butch leaned down and kissed her cheek, then her forehead, her nose, covering her face in kisses until she began to laugh.

"S-Stop!" She cried, hiding her face in his chest. Butch laughed a bit, wrapping his arms around her fully. Holding her as he gazed out into the wasteland around them as it slowly started to blanket in snow, The ice crystals giving reality a certain fuzzy feel to it.

"Come on, we should head inside before we freeze." Butch willed himself to let Anna go, but made sure to interlock his fingers with hers. Anna smiled that smile that always drove him crazy.

"Hell yeah! I can't feel my fingers!" She swung their arms a bit before leading the way back home.


	3. Comfort

Some days were great with Anna. She appeared to be flying sky high. Unstoppable, invincible. It didn't take much to get a smile out of her, and that was one of the things Butch loved about her. She could be the bright, vivid color in a word of muted ones. Butch wasn't sure if thats how everyone saw her, or it was just him. Not that is matter. He figured if everyone saw her the way he did, everyone would be in love with her.

Some days, however, were different with Anna. She'd get quiet, so quiet you could forget she was in the same room as you. She'd appear so small, curling up in a corner and just stare. These were the days that reminded Butch she was only human. Because some days, Anna would stop pretending, and it'd all finally wash over her. Everything that she had ever done. Leaving her home, killing countless individuals to find her father, only to lose him too.

On a rare night, Anna would actually talk about it all. She would admit it was the death that bothered her the most. To her, it didn't matter if they had shot first and asked questions later. Anna could never shake the hanging question of what would happened if things went even slightly different. Anna knew most of who she killed were truly evil, but a life was a life, and there was so much blood on her hands.

Some days it'd get even worse. She'd lock herself up completely, emotionally and literally. Explaining she was going to wash up, only to not return after a few hours. Butch always had to go and fetch her out of the bathrooms. He was always afraid of what he'd find after she'd been alone so long. Her tears were hard enough, but she always worried him when she got like this. He worried she'd go and do something stupid, just like him when he was feeling low.

Anna always kept a large supply of drugs in places... for trading of course. At least that was what she said. Anna didn't seem to be the junkie type to Butch, she hardly even drank. But he still couldn't shake the fact the idea scared the freaking shit out of him. She'd finally snap and throw everything away. He didn't blame her of course, having the whole wasteland virtually depend on her.

Butch swallowed, finding himself staring down the same horrible nightmare again as he walked to the girls bathroom. Hands stuffed in his pockets, eyes not daring to look at any of the citizens that passed. It was just one of those days again. He gave a few soft raps on the door and waited. When there was no response, he knocked harder. Silence again, his heart leaping into his throat as he tried for a third time.

"Anna?"

He heard movement in there, thank god. He cleared his throat.

"You okay in there?"

Silence again.

"Want me to come in?"

He glanced around nervously, no response again. He sighed.

"Alright...I'm comin' in. You better be decent."

He braced himself as he entered. For what, he had no clue, but he felt himself let out a breath when he saw her sitting up in the bathtub. He let the door swing shut behind him. Anna stared down at the floor, her hands doing a series of robotic movements, washing her arms and legs over and over again.

"Hey..." Butch blurted, awkwardly, that was far from his definition of decent.

"Hi..." her voice came out as a hoarse whisper, her eyes flicking up, then back to her own hands. Butch wasn't sure what to do, or say, or even think. He took a few more cautious steps towards her, as if she was some wild animal, ready to bolt at a moments notice. There wasn't enough soap left in the bath or obscure the view.

"A-Anna?" He found himself stammer a bit. Her eyes finally looked up at him. They were a bit red from crying, but very cold and distant.

"Yes?"

"You...You feelin' alright? Well, I guess that's stupid. Of course you're not feelin' right." He scolded himself, why did he always have to sound like an idiot when he really wanted his words to mean something. "Just..." He took a breath. "How about you dry off and we can just bash ears, ya know? That might help. You know I suck at all this feely junk." He looked down, kicking some dirt with his boot. Man, he was such a loser. Anna's silence didn't encourage him any further.

Finally she made a move, nodding she stood up. The splash of water dragging Butch's attention upward. He felt his cheeks heat up at the sight.

"Uhm-urh-" He knew he should do the polite thing and turn away, but too late for that now. The corner of Anna's mouth twitched upward into a small smile, but it didn't hold any feeling behind it.

"Never seen a naked women before?"

"What? No! It's not that!" Butch focused on the ceiling. Of course he'd had his share of one night stands in the vault, and down at the muddy rudder, but this was different. This was Anna. Standing in front of him, dripping wet and completely naked.

"Hand me that towel?" She asked, exiting the tub. Butch assumed she pointed, but wouldn't dare look. He fumbled, looking around until he found it laying on one of the sinks. Grabbing it, he thrust it out to her, eyes still trained at the floor. He felt Anna hand ghost over his, but didn't take the towel. It traveled up his arm settling on his shoulder as she stood inches away from him.

"Butch..." She said, voice hushed. He dragged his eyes upward. Was this right? He wasn't stupid, he knew what she was leading them both towards. Butch almost lost it when he watched her glance down at his lips just before stretching up to capture them with her own. Her touch was warm and soft. Nothing too desperate or sloppy, as if she had been planning every move days in advance.

He dropped the towel, hands came up to rest on the damp skin of her hips as she continued to kiss him, picking up the pace as she gripped his jacket. She gave a soft shiver, parting to gasp for air, her body flush against him.

Something in Butch finally snapped. Pressing her up against the wall, he latched onto her neck. Panting, Anna shivered a bit more. Her mind was going a mile a minute and she was having trouble keeping up. One thing she knew for sure; this wasn't right. It didn't feel right at least, for reasons Anna would figure out later.

"Butch." She started to tug on his wrists. Butch's grip only tightened, pressing her harder against the wall. "Butch, Stop." Anna pleaded. If her heart went any faster, she was sure it'd burst. Butch seemed to ignore her and carry on, coming back up to kiss her roughly. Anna gave a muffled cry, feeling tears start to come up again. Anna felt a wave of panic was over her, sapping her of any strength she had to push him off. "S-Stop!" She sobbed out, causing Butch to finally freeze.

What the hell was he doing? He looked down at her, was she crying because of him? She hiccuped, wrapping her arms around herself as she cried. Butch loosened his grip, but didn't let go completely.

"Hey..." He said softly, she wouldn't meet his eyes. She just stared at the ground and cried more. He leaned forward again, causing her to flinch. Butch simply buried his face in the crook of her neck. "I'm sorry...It's ok. I'm sorry." He whispered, a hand rubbing up and down her arm. "I didn't mean to..." he trailed off a bit. "I Just...I love you...a lot."

Those words made them both feel a bit nauseous. Butch ignored the fact that it was the first time he had ever said anything like that too her. He lifted his head once her crying had died down to only a few sniffles.

"We gotta get you dried off, babe. Before you catch a cold." She looked up and nodded, still clinging to him as he moved to grab her towel off the floor.


	4. Happy New Years

"So, who put you up to this?" Anna pushed, taking another sip from her wine. Butch scoffed.

"What'da mean?" Butch's grin was betraying him. The pair was on one of the roofs in megaton, blanket spread out, a bottle of wine between them.

"Really? Come on, you don't have a romantic bone in your body ." Anna snuggled up closer to him, legs draped over his lap. Butch took a long drink, as if stalling.

"Ok...Moria did. She thought it'd be nice for us to 'get away' for a little bit." Anna laughed a bit.

"Pretty nice of her. Cute of you to be so honest." She looked up at the night sky, some stars peeking out from behind the clouds.

"Yeah I guess..." Butch put his arm around her, hugging her close. The couple lapsed into silence silence, just enjoying the moment.

"Oh hey..." Anna said suddenly, she had been fiddling with her pipboy. "Hey its 2279...When did that happen?"

Butch looked down at her. "Oh...Ok?" He wasn't sure why it mattered.

"January 3rd...missed the New Year by three days." Anna shrugged a bit.

"Don't get what's the big deal about the new year...another year to survive and fight...ain't look'n forward to that."

"That was surprisingly poetic...Remember the news years back in the vault?" Anna shifted a bit, smiling. "Tasted champagne for the first time when I was 13..." Butch laughed.

"Wow, weren't you a little rebel." Anna nudged his side, shifting again to sit on her knees.

"Lets have a toast."

"To what?"

"The new year..."

"but its not the new year, we missed it."

"You have an imagination don't you?" Butch scoffed.

"Alright, I'll bite." He raised his glass.

"So...A toast to the New year," Anna raised her own glass. "I hope- No, I know, this year will be better than all the others...Because we'll be in it together." She clinked her glass to his.

"Wow...that was horrible, gross even. Ya know, I'm having second thoughts about you. I think you're too much of a goodie-two shoes for me." Butch smirked.

"Oh shut up! Or I won't give you a new years kiss." she taunted.

"I'm pretty sure we've kissed in the past few days, nothing special." While his guard was down, Anna grabbed the front of his shirt and tugged him forward, slamming her lips to his. Butch's eyebrows shot up. Once Anna parted, his head was still spinning.

"Whoa..." He breathed, watching Anna's lips spread into a giant grin. "Where you've been keeping that one?" she sat back down, snuggling back next to him.

"Mmh, Happy New Years..." Anna said into his jacket. Butch kissed the top of her head.

"Happy New Years, babe."


	5. Cross Bones

**A/N**

**Just a little warning, I know this fic is rated M, but this chapter contains a little bit more violence then what I normally have in my stories. Nothing that goes into much detail, but still a bit different from what I normally do. Also, sorry I haven't posted anything in a while, then I just post one that's a real downer. I promise I have 5 other chapters started, just nothing finished. **

* * *

><p>God, her head pounded; Anna refused to open her eyes for a while, seemingly content with listening to her heart pick up the pace. Everything hurt she concluded as her senses slowly came alive. She was restrained to a chair, and her mouth taped shut. Shifting slightly, she winced as rope dug into her flesh. Of course she was stripped of all her armor, leaving her in just a tank top and her briefs. Anna racked her brain to try and remember how she have ended up here.<p>

A groan called her to attention, eyes snapping open. White light flooded her vision, blinding her. Another confused noise from behind, she responded with a muffled 'Butch?' The tape just smothered it. Another grunt, and a futile shift. Butch continued trying to loosen his bonds as Anna looked around the room.

She recognized it to be part of a vault. The room was dusty, a molding mattress rested against the wall. Broken dressers scattered the room. From the smell, a small camp fire burned somewhere behind her. Why they would want a fire was beyond her, but judging by the fact the lights were all on, the air filtration could easily handle the smoke.

For a while the two sat in forced silence, both racking their brains to try and remember how they got into this mess. Finally the door opened, and two raiders waltzed into the room. Grinning as their eyes connected with Anna's.

"Well, well, well, looks like the sleeping beauties are finally awake." Anna felt fear creep up as she realized how powerless she really was. The first one stood in front of Anna, leaning down so close Anna could smell his disgusting odor. As Anna stared into the raiders eyes, trying to figure out what was behind them, she heard and rip and Butch swear openly. Anna was then also freed of her gag, but she didn't speak. She instead simply watched the raider carefully. She had always been clever with words, but that was normally when she had a back up plan involving guns.

"The names Bones...I bet you're wondering why you're here." The first raider said cooly.

"What the fuck do you want!?" Butch snapped. "What the hell is going on!?" A thunk, Anna flinched for Butch as he yelped, the chair jerking to one side a bit from the force of the blow.

"And that's Skull...He doesn't play nice." A horrible smirk.

"So what do you want? It you wanted us dead, you would have done it by now." Anna asked, each word carefully thought out.

"Ah, so you're not stupid." Bones seemed so smug, and it pissed her off. "We want you to pay." He said simply.

"What are we paying for, then?"

"You know!" Bones snapped suddenly and glared at her.

"I have a lot to pay for, just wanted to know who was cashing in." Anna glared back, hazel eyes showing just as much intensity as his. Bones simply shrugged, backing off a bit.

"You've killed to many of our own." He went around her. "So, we all want you to pay." He said lightly from behind, as if he was asking her to pay up 5 caps. A shuffle, then Bones came back into view with a red hot iron poker. He showed off his rotting teeth in a sadistic smile as sweat formed on Anna's brow. Her heart went into overdrive as she stared at the sharpened tip of the iron. Bones replaced the tape over her mouth. "But not how you think."

A few sounds behind her and Butch was freed from his chair. Of course his first move was to attack, which was short lived. Skull was stronger and bigger than Butch. He was pushed forward in front of Anna.

"You get to watch." Bones waved the hot poker in front of Anna's face as Butch was shoved to the ground. The Tape was replaced Butch's mouth now too, Bones laughed as Skull ripped his tunnel snakes jacket off of him and tossed it aside. Bones stooped down and picked it up. "Cool jacket, I think I'll keep it." he sneered. Butch threw muffled profanities at both of them as Skull ripped apart his T-shirt. Butch froze, eyes wide with panic as the red hot poker was passed to Skull. Skull gave a low chuckle, watching Butch frantically shake his head and squirm before stabbing the tip of the poker into Butch's left shoulder. The greaser gave a horrible muffled scream. Anna's heart leaped into her throat as she began to struggle. She finally let pure panic take over her. No more calculated moves. No more caution. Just the pure, frantic need to get out. Get out and help her partner. Both raiders roared with laughter.

Skull seemed to be practiced in the art of torture, (No surprise there) as he made sure to take his time. He made sure the skin was burnt to a crisp before really sinking in. Butch kept screaming until he didn't have a voice anymore. The pain was becoming too much for him as he started to feel dizzy and nauseous. He just wanted to give up and pass out. Anna gave a small whimper, tears forming in her eyes. She willed Butch to stay awake, she couldn't lose him.

Bones loomed over the wanderer, all of his carefree attitude gone. She felt so small and helpless, a feeling she hadn't felt since first leaving her vault. She saw no point in trying to hold back the tears.

"How does it feel, Bitch!?" Bones snapped as she stared at him wide eyed. Skull twisted the iron poker still in Butch's shoulder. By this point, Butch could only manage a weak flinch.

"I bet you didn't think twice when you killed them! My brothers, my sisters! You didn't care!" He swing his fist, the heavy weight colliding with her head, causing it to spin. "'But I was only doing what was good.'" Bones mocked in a high tone, assuming that was how she wanted to answer. "It's not like we don't have feelings." He hit her again.

"We have families!" Again.

"Friends!" Again.

"You Bitch!" And again.

Skull came up and tapped Bones on the shoulder, holding up the bloody poker, now cooled. Behind them both, Butch didn't move. While Bones was occupied with Anna, Skull made sure Butch wouldn't be waking up for a long while, if at all. Bones' smirk returned, flexing his hand as he seemed to calm, turning to gaze at her broken face. Her body jerked with sobs silenced by the tape covering her mouth.

"I guess we can take a break, but one last thing..." He raised his arm, bringing his armor clad elbow down on her left thigh with all his force. She screamed in pain, swearing she heard a crunch. A burning pain quickly bloomed. The raiders once more howled with laughter as they left the room. "Hey...You said take a break...Then you break her leg." It was the first words Skull had spoken since entering the room. Bones began shaking uncontrollably with laughter as they exited, the door falling shut behind them both.

Anna's eyes snapped to Butch, the image of his seemingly lifeless body sent chills down her spine. She began to struggle once again. Each light movement of her leg made her slightly nauseous, but she had to do something, anything. She figured the doors were guarded, but she wasn't worried about escaping. The only thing she could focus on was Butch, She began to try and shimmy back and forth, trying to scoot her chair across the room. Inadvertently, she leaned too far. She had time for a sharp gasp before she fell to her left side. She gave a muffled shriek of pain as her thigh slammed into the ground. She withered, trying to force herself to take deep breaths. She focused ahead, seeing spots dance across her vision. She swore at herself, now she couldn't do anything. She tried blinking away the tears, but more came to replace them quickly. She laid there in silence, sniffling. Pathetic. Part of her just prayed they would kill her soon just to get it over with. Before they got any more heinous ideas.

She lost count of the minutes that ticked by as she laid there in defeat. She really had truly give up. From her angle, she couldn't even see how Butch was doing. Worse than her she assured herself. She simply stared at the wall, trying not to think of the other things Bones and Skull planned on doing to them. Suddenly, the door opened again. Anna squeezed her eyes shut as she braced herself for whatever was about to happen next. She felt her chair get lifted back up.

"Need a hand?" A beautifully familiar voice whispered. Anna's eyes snapped open to the image of Sarah Lyons, a good friend of hers. She gave a hopeful, excited whimper right before Lyons ripped off the tape.

"M-More like-like a leg." Anna stuttered, her emotions fried, but were quickly coming back to life, making her jittery. She realized how raw her voice sounded. "Bastard broke my leg I think."

"Dammit, I was hoping we could sneak out. I didn't think they'd put you in this bad of a shape before we got here." Sarah looked like she wanted to apologize, but knew Anna didn't blame her. She turned and glanced at Butch.

"Is it just you?" Anna dragged her attention back to Sarah.

"No, I have all my men at different posts around the vault. Don't worry, there's no lack of backup." Lyons took out a knife, cutting Anna free. "I was just hoping we could avoid any murder for once..."

"N-No, please...Be my guest." Anna braced herself to stand. Lyons scrambled to make sure she was steady. Anna swatted her aside, limping across the room to Butch. She swallowed, the hole in his shoulder looked god awful. She forced back tears, he looked so pale.

the gun shots echoing around the vault called Sarah to attention.

"Shit. We've been discovered." She whistled, and two pack members entered. Casually stepping over the bodies of the guards. The two members gingerly picked up Butch.

"How did you find us? I don't even really remember what happened." Anna asked, limping after Lyons to the door.

"We got word from Moria back in Megaton. She said she noticed you two hadn't checked in for a while. She got worried. It didn't take long to find all the different bounties on your head. It also wasn't rocket science to find which group of raiders were in the area." She gestured to another pack member in the hall, pointing to Anna. Before Anna could say anything she was scooped up. "There's no way you're keeping up with us with that leg. It's not ideal, but it works."

"Just give me some stimpaks and I'll be fine!" Anna whined a little as shame flooded her. She hated being the damsel in distress, it was normally Butch's job. Lyons ignored her, giving commands to her men before leading the way to freedom. The next minute or so that followed was hectic. Bullets and lasers flying all around. Shouts and screams rang out, but Lyons and her band kept running. They paused only to cut down those who got in the way.

Sunlight was a shock when they made it out, it didn't take Anna long to recognize they had come out of vault 106. She should have known raider would make it a hive once the gas problem was fixed. This fact turned out to be lucky, being that they weren't that far from megaton. Butch of course was in serious need of medical attention. Anna tried not to think about that, and focused on the fact that they were both alive.

The pain was dulled now. Still there of course, but very much dulled. The Med-x was taking its time to kick in. Anna pressed her ear to Butch's chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart. Which each beat, a wave of relief washed over her. They were finally alone back in their Megaton house. Doc Church patched them up as best he could, giving them some extra med-x for the pain, and instructed them not to step foot out of their house for some time. They need the time to heal. For once, Anna didn't argue. At this point. She couldn't imagine going out ever again.

Butch had woken up shortly after Church had finished up on him. He had just about enough energy to walk home, upstairs, and collapses on the bed, where they were now. Anna curled up on his good side as best she could. Church said she'd have to keep the weight off her leg for a long while, and might even end up with a limp. She expected this. She wasn't immortal. After everything with the purifier, and the few short adventures that followed, she knew it was only a matter of time before she'd become broken again, and become a more permanent broken.

"You ok?" Butch's rusty voice suddenly sounded, causing Anna to lift her head. She sat up on her elbow, looking down at his bruised face. She nodded slowly.

"Yeah...I'm fine." She whispered back. She was so unbelievable grateful to see those clear blue eyes again. His cracked lips finally pulled into a lazy smirk.

"Hey, you look kinda hot with that black eye of yours." He even managed a chuckle or two before the pain washed everything out. Anna would have playfully smacked at him, but was too afraid to hurt him further.

"Just shut up, ok?" Her lips pulled into a soft smile as she laid back down. He wrapped his good arm around her, holding her close for a moment before relaxing.

"We owe Lyons a big one." He said thoughtfully. She nodded. "She even made sure to get my jacket back from that bastard." Butch's smile grew a bit at the thought of was Sarah must had done to him.

"We'll pay her back later." That phrase...'Pay back.' caused her the shiver. "Get some rest, Butch." She instructed, looking up to kiss the edge of his jaw. Butch didn't protest at all. He closed his eyes as they both settled down for the rest of the night.


	6. Be my Valentine, Dammit!

"These things look just like pure sugar..." Anna opened the dusty box and pulled a small, brightly colored heart out. She turned it over in her hand with interest. "I...I think you eat it." She squinted at it in the low lighting. Something seemed to be written on it. Butch grimaced at the corpse of a radroach as he stepped over it. Why Anna always loved to wander into these abandoned corner stores he'd never know. He yanked the box out of her hand.

"Geez...'Conversation hearts?' What? People didn't talk to each other in the past? Ya had to do it through shitty candy?"

"'Too cool'" Anna said lightly, almost as a sigh, as she handed the sugared heart to him. At first Butch was horribly confused. Then he noticed that in pink font on the heart, the very same words stared back at him.

"These are...Weird." Butch decided.

"Judging by the gross amount of cupids on the box, I think they were for Valentines day or something." Anna deducted as she dug another out of the box for another. "Try it!" Butch hesitantly did so, and was greeted to a sugary and slightly chalky delight.

"Ain't half bad." He shrugged, comparing it to the equally shitty stuff they were forced to eat day after day. Anna giggled a bit.

"'Be mine?'" She asked sweetly, showing him the heart before popping it into her mouth. Butch was catching onto the game. He quickly dug one out and read it.

"'Hot stuff.'" Butch snorted.

"Why thank you." Anna grinned, hopping up onto the counter next to the cash register. She reached out her hand for another.

"'Crazy for you.'" Anna read. "Only they used the number..." She popped it in her mouth and sucked on it. Butch dug for another one. He grinned, setting the box on the counter and getting down on one knee.

"Anna..." He presented her with the candy heart. "'Marry me?'" He snickered, quoting the heart. Anna looked at him dully, unimpressed by his proposal as she took the box and rummaged through it. She oohed in approval at the one she found.

"'No Way'" She grinned, holding up the green heart she quoted. Butch deflated into a mock pout, rising.

"And why the hell not?"

"Cause you're a boob." She said simply, popping another into her mouth. Butch started digging through the box again. More interested in reading them rather then eating them.

"These things are a drag..." Butch held one up. "'First kiss?' I bet they ran out of things to say." That one gave Anna an idea. She reached up and tugged on his shirt, getting him to lean towards her enough to connect their lips. Butch gave a soft sigh as they kissed. All too soon Anna parted with a smirk plastered to her lips. Butch blinked. "What?" He noticed there was a candy in his mouth, He nearly choked on it for a moment as he stared at Anna in bewilderment. He didn't have one before the kiss. "How...How you'd do that?"

Anna simply cackled, hopping off the counter and taking the box of candy back from him.

"Happy belated Valentines Day!"


End file.
